2015 Milestone Guidance - Maryland

Local 2016-2017 Two-Year Milestone GuidanceIntroductionTwo-year Milestones represent near-term commitments, which promote a steady paceof progress toward water restoration targets. They are part of the federal ChesapeakeBay Accountability Framework. They also support Maryland’s BayStat accountabilitysystem. The Milestones take two forms:1. Programmatic Milestones2. BMP Implementation Milestones1. Programmatic MilestonesDescription: Programmatic Milestones identify the anticipated establishment orenhancement of the institutional means that support and enable implementation (e.g.,funding, authorities, enhancing existing programs and resources, designing andestablishing new programs, studies, etc.).Request: The State is requesting that local partners submit a brief summary of thenon-agricultural programmatic commitments to be addressed within the countyboundary during the Programmatic Milestone period. Ideally this should include bothCounty and municipal activities. State and federal restoration milestones are developedseparately 1. Please use the template format provided with this guidance, which isdiscussed below.Milestone Period: The period for the 2016-2017 Programmatic Milestones covers thetwo calendar years from January 1, 2016 – December 31, 2017.Submittal and Reporting Process: New Programmatic Milestone Submittal: The State is requesting submittal ofProgrammatic Milestone commitments by January 29, 2016. Submit toPaul.Emmart@Maryland.gov.Interim Programmatic Milestone Progress Reporting: Please provide aninterim status report on the Programmatic Milestones by January 31, 2017.Final Programmatic Milestone Progress Reporting: Please provide a finalprogress report on the Programmatic Milestones by January 31, 2018.General Guidance: Local 2017 Programmatic Milestones should build upon theprevious 2015 Milestones. 2015 Milestone commitments of other counties offer a readysource of ideas for potential inclusion in your own jurisdiction’s 2017 Milestonecommitments.1The State is interested in aligning all BMP implementation milestone commitments; however, thisremains an aspiration at this time.12015 1010

Local Water Resource Elements (WREs), developed as part of the comprehensive landuse planning process, are another potential source of ideas for programmaticmilestones. The WRE documents can be found by searching “Maryland water resourceelements” on the internet.Listening Sessions, held at the beginning of the WIP development process, generatedideas and recommendations [PDF], which provide another source of potential ideas forprogrammatic milestones.Topic Areas to Consider: The following suggested areas of potential programmaticactivity are intended to prompt your thinking. Not all may apply to your jurisdiction.FundingOperational BudgetCapital BudgetNew Funding Source developmentTracking & ReportingAligning MS4 annual reporting w/Sept. 30 annual BMP progress reporting dateHistorical BMP CleanupInterim/Final Milestone Reporting Jan. 2015/Jan. 2016CoordinationChange/Document Relationships between (County/Muni) Phase I and II MS4sPartnership Building/EnhancementsEnhancing Inter-Departmental CoordinationOutreach/EducationPublic AwarenessEngaging Political LeadersProgram Development or EnhancementStudiesPublic InvolvementPractical Steps, e.g.:- Collaborate with watershed associations, community organizations, etc. toleverage grant funding for environmental project development- Establish a committee to coordinate implementation projects- Seek state/federal funds to expand program capacityStaff RecruitmentLocal Watershed/Project PlanningSite Identification for implementation opportunitiesCost and alternatives analysesAssessing local benefits in addition to impacts on BayPrioritizing potential projects22015 1010

Programmatic Milestone Template: To promote consistency and ease ofinterpretation, the State is requesting local partners adopt a standard template for theMilestones, which is an MSWord document (Attached). Figure 1 shows an image of thetemplate.The blue rows of the Programmatic Milestone Template are intended to partition broadtopic areas, under which would be listed subtopics. Maryland’s 2013 ProgrammaticMilestone document [PDF], and those of other Bay States, use this same template.The columns of the Programmatic Milestone Template are fairly self-explanatory: Target Date: Expected date/year to accomplish the milestone. For Milestones thatinvolve multiple steps, the target dates can serve as a guiding schedule. Milestone: This can be a short title or brief description of the milestone. ForMilestones that involve multiple steps, this column can identify the steps. Deliverable: This is the tangible outcome of the milestone. It can be a writtenstrategy, a study, correspondence, briefing materials, an ordinance, a guidancemanual or operating procedures, public meeting minutes, etc. Lead Agency: Ideally, this should be one entity to avoid diffusion of responsibility.However, other coordinating agencies and partners may be identified. Comments/Status Updates: This may be used initially to clarify or qualify themilestone commitment. During Interim and Final Milestone reporting, this column isused to describe the status of progress. This is the only column that should changeduring the milestone period. If a milestone is dropped or substantively changed, itshould remain in the table, but the change can be noted in this column.32015 1010

Figure 1 – Programmatic Milestone Template42015 1010

2. BMP Implementation MilestonesDescription: BMP Implementation Milestones are expressed as the amount of varioustypes of restoration activities, e.g. structural BMPs, which have geo-located coordinates.The practices can be described by various units, like acres, linear feet, or numbers ofsystems.Request: The State is requesting that local partners submit a brief summary of thenon-agricultural BMP implementation that is anticipated to occur within the countyboundary during the BMP Milestone period. Ideally this should include both County andmunicipal activities. State and federal restoration milestones are developedseparately 2. You may format your information as you like using a spreadsheet or textdocument (Attachment A provides an example).Milestone Period: The period for the 2014–2015 BMP Milestones covers two statefiscal years, July 1, 2013 – June 30, 2015. This period for BMP Milestones differs fromthe period for Programmatic Milestones, which covers the calendar years 2014 and2015. The difference allows the State time to consolidate, process and submit BMPdata to the federal US Environmental Protection Agency’s Chesapeake Bay ProgramOffice.Submittal and Reporting Process: IMPORTANT – It is important to note that BMPTwo-Year Milestone reporting is not the means by which reductions are reported andcredited in the Chesapeake Bay watershed model:A. BMP Two-Year Milestone Reporting: Local BMP Two-Year Milestonereporting is solely for the purpose of informing the public about progress onnear-term implementation commitments. For more information Contact:Paul.Emmart@Maryland.govB. BMP Data Reporting: Separate avenues are in place for reporting technicalBMP data on restoration progress. BMP implementation data are due to theState on September 30 each year. The State formats the data forincorporation into the Chesapeake Bay Model by December 1. For moreinformation Contact: Gregorio.Sandi@Maryland.gov New BMP Milestone Submittal: The State is requesting submittal of BMPMilestone commitments by January 29, 2016.Interim BMP Milestone Reporting: Please provide an interim status report onthe BMP Milestones by January 31, 2017.Final BMP Milestone Reporting: Please provide a final progress report on theBMP Milestones by January 31, 2018.2The State is interested in aligning all BMP implementation milestone commitments; however, thisremains an aspiration at this time.52015 1010

Examples: See Attachment A for a sample list of BMP Implementation Milestones anda table showing interim progress reporting (provided by Baltimore County for their 2013Milestones). A more simple approach would be appropriate for smaller jurisdictions.62015 1010

Attachment A:Examples of BMP Implementation Milestonesand Interim Milestone Progress Reporting*2012-2013 Implementation Milestones 63,174 linear feet of stream restoration972 linear feet of shoreline enhancement669 acres of SWM retrofits/conversionsStreet Sweeping at current paceStorm drain cleaning at current pace6,125 acres – urban nutrient management (1998)Watershed Association projectsSSO elimination (20% of current average overflow rate)Redevelopment (estimated 200 acres over 2 years)Possible (10 acres urban riparian buffer and 100 acres of upland reforestation)Interim 2012-2013 Implementation Progress ReportingActionStream RestorationProposedActual Rate for 1 yearRestorationRates (2-years)63,174 Linear3,500FeetShoreline Erosion Control5,190 LinearFeetSWM Retrofit/Conversions669 AcresStreet Sweeping% Progress5.5%5,710110.0%15.22.3%Current RateBelow historic rate35.9%Storm Drain CleaningCurrent Rate the same as historicrate104.2%Urban NutrientManagement6,125 AcresSSO Elimination20% reductionfrom baselineUpland Reforestation85 AcresNeed Program DevelopmentRiparian BufferReforestation57 AcresNeed to develop tracking mechanismUrban Tree CanopyPlanting1,400 treesRedevelopment200 AcresWaiting for expert panel resultsNeed to develop tracking mechanism1,676119.7%Need to develop tracking mechanismWatershed AssociationCurrent RateExceeds historic rate268.6%Projects* From Baltimore County’s 2013 Milestones, used with the permission of the County Department ofEnvironmental Protection and Sustainability.72015 1010

Milestone Period: The period for the 2016-2017 Programmatic Milestones covers the two calendar years from January 1, 2016 – December 31, 2017. Submittal and Reporting Process: New Programmatic Milestone Submittal: The State is requesting submittal of Programmatic Milestone commitments by January 29, 2016. Submit to Paul.Emmart@Maryland.gov.